1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a shift device for an automatic transmission of an automobile, and, more particularly, to an automatic transmission shift device which can be operated with better feeling.
2. Description of Related Art
Typically, automatic transmission shift devices are provided inside a console between front bucket seats. Although such a shift device has a superior operability, it narrows the floor space and interferes with a passenger's foot space. Alternatively, another type of automatic transmission shift device is mounted on an instrument panel or dashboard. Such a dashboard mounted type of shift device has a shift or select lever extending upwardly slanting backwardly usually at a small angle with respect to the vertical direction. Some shift levers of this type are provided at the middle of their shafts with shock absorber means to absorb a great deal of the kinetic energy generated in a frontal crash. The shift lever, passing through the dashboard and extending almost vertically, is pushed and pulled or moved back and forth in order to select desired ranges. Such a dashboard type shift device is known from, for instance, Japanese Unexamined Utility Model Publication No. 60-10911.
The dashboard type shift lever of the automatic transmission shift device described in the publication mentioned above is located relatively far from a steering wheel, and hence, it has a poor operability. In order to improve the operability of a shift lever, it may be incorporated extending almost horizontally rearward from a front panel portion of the dashboard so as to be operated up and down.
Since, generally, a human arm is considered as poor in moving an object approximately vertically up and down as opposed to moving an object approximately horizontally back and forth, a horizontal shift lever compares unfavorably with a floor mounted type shift lever. In order for a dashboard mounted type horizontal shift lever to provide a feeling of shift operation as favorable as the floor mounted type shift lever while preventing the driver from experiencing fatigue of his or her arm, it is very important to enable the shift device, including the shift lever, to be operated with the most appropriate physical power and motion of the human arm.